


Nightmares & Dreams

by arthurmorgan-s-heart (Silverblind)



Category: Red Dead Redemption
Genre: F/M, Family, Female Reader, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-06
Updated: 2019-01-06
Packaged: 2019-10-05 17:35:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17329430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverblind/pseuds/arthurmorgan-s-heart
Summary: You and Arthur get an unexpected visitor in the night.





	Nightmares & Dreams

**Author's Note:**

> This is a request fill from my tumblr blog. Uploaded here for convenience - find me on tumblr - arthurmorgan-s-heart
> 
> Original request text: "Could I request a fem reader x Arthur where the two are sleeping away peacefully when suddenly they’re woken up to young jack shaking them awake. They kinda panic a little but then jack just says he had a nightmare and he just wants to sleep between his uncle Arthur and aunt y/n cause he’s afraid to wake up Abigail and John And then maybe the next morning reader or Arthur is low key kinda just like, so when we gonna get our own kiddo hMMMmmMmMm?? (Please smother me with fluff)"

You’d gone to sleep early that evening, exhausted from a day of hard work, and it seems as if you’d only been asleep for mere minutes when you feel a small hand shake you awake. You let out a groan as you roll over; you feel Arthur’s warmth next to you - he’d come to bed at some point, though you hadn’t realised it -, but the hand is coming from the other side. Your eyes flutter open, taking several seconds to focus on the blurry silhouette in front of you. You can hear short, irregular breathing and hiccuping sobs, and you feel your heartbeat quicken in panic.

“Jack?” you say when your sleep-addled mind finally gives a name to the small shape at your bedside. “What’s wrong?”

You sit up, and feel Arthur stir at your side as you reach out a hand, running your fingers through Jack’s hair. His cheeks are wet with tears, and he’s shaking like a leaf.

“I - I -” he starts, but can’t manage any more through his tears. The sight of him like this stabs at your heart, and you put your hands on his shoulders, gently drawing him closer.

“Jack, you alright?” Arthur’s voice is still thick with sleep, yet you feel him throw the covers off him to stand, assuming the worst. He’s already pulling on his boots before he stops to listen - save for Jack’s faint whimpers, Shady Belle is quiet and still. You pull Jack up into your arms, seating him on the bed next to you, and he buries his face in your shoulder as you hold him close. You hear Arthur toe off his boots again before he sits back down, his hand coming to rest on your waist as he turns to look at Jack.

“I - had - had a bad - dream,” Jack finally says through lingering sobs. You sigh in relief - even despite the mansion’s apparent calm, you hadn’t been able to keep your mind from drifting, wondering if he had hurt himself, or worse. You almost ask him where his parents are before you remember that John had been gone for days on a job, and Abigail had had to go to town to visit the doctor.

“It’s alright,” you whisper, rubbing his back. “It’s over.”

“Can I - Can I stay with you?” he asks in a small voice, still clutching to your nightshirt. The question takes you off-guard, and you look back at Arthur. He gives you a quizzical look, and you nod slightly - he seems hesitant for half a second before he leans forward, placing a gentle hand on Jack’s head.

“Sure,” Arthur says with a smile as Jack looks at him over your shoulder. “Come on.”

You wait for Arthur to lie down before placing Jack between you, smiling when he immediately presses himself to Arthur’s chest. Arthur gives you an indecipherable look as you pull the covers over the three of you - there is a sadness lingering behind his calm facade, bittersweet memories flashing behind his eyes as he reaches for you over Jack’s small form, placing his hand on your hip. You take his hand in yours, bringing it to your mouth to press a kiss to his fingers, and he manages a small smile - _I’m alright_. Jack already seems to have fallen back asleep, nestled between you, and you keep Arthur’s hand in yours as you close your eyes. Sleep overtakes you quicker than you would have expected, and you allow it to take you with a sigh.

* * *

The sun has barely started to rise when you wake again - you can see the pale golden light filtering through the room’s tattered curtains, splattering on the worn wooden floor. You turn your head to look at Arthur, finding him still asleep with Jack tucked against his chest, just as they had been a few hours ago. It’s rare to see Arthur so peaceful. The sight brings a smile to your lips, and you can’t help but wonder what your life would be like with a child of your own - though you quickly dismiss the idea; it’s not something you can ask of Arthur. Not after - _them_.

Lost in your own thoughts, you don’t see Arthur open his eyes, and you jump slightly when you feel his hand on yours, looking up to meet his gaze - he smiles, and though his eyes are still half-veiled by the haze of sleep, they seem brighter, somehow, as if something hard and heavy had started to crumble away inside him, allowing him to let go of his grief, if only for a moment. You answer with a smile of your own as his hand leaves yours to come rest on Jack’s back, prompting a sleepy groan from him as he shifts against Arthur for a moment before settling back into sleep. There is a light in Arthur’s eyes now, a light you don’t remember having ever seen before, and you feel your heart flutter in your chest as you settle back down in the bed to try and steal a few more minutes of rest - perhaps you can allow yourself to hope, after all.


End file.
